Do you speak up or withhold your views? We live in incendiary times and many fear to speak because they live in nations where censorship is either ubiquitous or becoming increasingly so. Others resist the urge to speak out or hesitate to speak because they remember Abraham Lincoln’s powerful words…”Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.” Whether we choose to speak up/out or not about issues that concern us or our communities is an individual choice, and it should not be a requirement for acceptance or membership in our communities. Each person must be allowed to choose the path they wish to express themselves. I don’t like censorship and I dislike fake news even more because it attempts to manipulate opinions and spreads lies. But we must decide for ourselves what we choose to hear, see or speak. The choice is ours. What will you choose?

More Below!“Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the danger of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of ‘crackpot’ than the stigma of conformity.” Thomas J. Watson

Is the choice Yours to make? Yes, it is. There is much that concerns me about the world we live in, and I don’t intend to hang it all out for consumption by foes or even trolls. Yet, I agree with Jennifer Donnelly’s words that “We who have means and a voice must use them to help those who have neither.” To defend the defenseless and speak out on behalf of the voiceless is humane. I know so many who feel abandoned by the world and live under the strain and worry of terrible events that remain part of their daily life; especially those who live in war zones. We must not forget them. However, in the cacophony of voices, it becomes easy to get lost and we need to spend time reflecting on what matters most to our hearts. As our global community continues to experience upheavals and shifts that impact us all, we can serve each other best by working towards global peace and unity. Discriminatory practices or censorship of any form is anathema to global peace. Clearly, some are not interested in that approach and, while everyone is entitled to their opinion, the rest of us must not be forced to drink their poison. Speak up if you may and choose your words wisely. Have your say!

This post was inspired by a Daily Post prompt – Resist – and a Discover Challenge prompt: – SPEAK OUT – This week, Get inspired by those who speak out. Whether through blogging or marching, make your voice heard. So this week, let’s talk. What do you feel stigma or shame about, whether personally or at a cultural level? How can we change that? If you were to start a national, or international, campaign to get people talking, what would it be? Share your experience, and see how many people relate. As an added challenge, take a moment to find other people’s stories through the WordPress.com Reader this week. If something resonates, comment, connect, and build community together. To help other participants and new fans find your response in the Reader, tag your post #DiscoverWP. Not sure how to add a tag? Learn more.

Positive Motivation Tip: To speak up, we must consider our source and add a dash of wisdom to our choice of words.

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Such an insightful and wise post. We are living among so much tension right now that we all need to look inward and speak up. It is so encouraging to feel like we are not alone in our viewpoints. Hope we all continue towards peace and acceptance.

Interesting thought. I believe in speaking out my opinion. However at times, in certain groups or to certain people, expressing your opinion and arguing could be a mere waste of time & energy!!!! I’ve felt that in a last few months, a couple times.

True! There is a saying for it… speaking to the choir. Some folks will never hear others point of view because their minds are solidly made up. I say respect that and move forward. In a world with billions of people, why waste time on that?

I do too and I make sure I speak because I must NOT because someone is prompting me to say something. There are times when silence is best and times when speaking out is the only way to address a matter. WE have to decide for ourselves. 🙂

Exactly and that is why I believe the choice is ours to make. Some people speak on everything while others are reflective and measured in what they speak about. In our ever growing digitized world, it is easy to forget that those dinner time conversations do not always work well on the internet … and should be left on the dinner table. Yesterday, some of the members of a group I manage were very, very upset with a post from one of our members. We removed the incendiary post and it was a reminder to all of us that mindfulness is a virtue worth protecting in the face or irrationality. ❤

Very insightful post! We are living in the world where there is so much uncertainty. Sometimes you are just frightened to raise a voice thinking, that the person sitting next to you can give you a bullet shot in the head. Though I strongly feel that once should take a stand for themselves as there is no point in living a life of coward!

This is something I contemplate for a long time too. A friend once said, if you have nothing good to say, then don’t say. For me, I will think before I say and will definitely speak if the person in concern is my friend!